Ram Kapoor and the Harlem Shake

We are all aware of the Gangam style. The M&E fraternity also got a feel of it three days ago at the Frames convention in Mumbai where a Korean delegation was present. Similar to the Gangam style, the next new internet rage has been the "Harlem Shake'. For those not aware like me what's Harlem Shake here is the wikipedia explanation for the same: The Harlem Shake is an internet meme in the form of a video in which a group of people performs a comedy sketch accompanied by a short excerpt from the song 'Harlem Shake'. As a meme, the video was replicated by many people, using the same concept, and this rapidly led to it becoming viral in early February 2013, With thousands of "Harlem Shake" videos being made and uploaded to YouTube every day at the height of its popularity.
And yet again YRF has attempted to create a Harlem Shake version with the cast and crew of the yet to be released film 'Mere dad ki Maruti. This nutty video was shot during a special screening of the film. It's the first time that something like this is being experimented with a Bollywood film. Ashish Patil of YRF says, "while we are doing the regular marketing and promotion of the film. We have done some innovative stuff like Stomping for the title track and now the Harlem Shake. This is targeted at the younger and a different kind of audience." I was told that the idea of Harlem Shake first  struck Anushka Sharma...yes the actress the day before at midnight.
Offlate Bollywood has been seeing some interesting innovations in marketing. Many of the recent films that have been declared as blockbusters have one common thing in them, which is 'innovative marketing', so much so that it has become the call of the day. For example during Gangs Of Wasseypur, the producer hired graffiti artistes from well known colleges like J.J. School of arts to do designs on outdoor walls in Mumbai. And their 'works' was seen  when one passed on the road from Mahim To Matunga. Similar grafitti designs were painted in various other cities to promote the film. For Kahani, lead actress Vidya Balan was roaming around in the streets with a baby bump promoting the film.
In today’s time, a movie might be great but sans an aggressive marketing campaign, it would be very difficult to have it make an impact at the box office. The aggressive marketing followed in Bollywood today could well be credited to the Studios such as Disney UTV Motion Pictures, Viacom18 Motion Pictures, Yash Raj Films, Eros International to name a few that have put a method to the madness of branding and marketing movies. Secondly, the corporatisation of the film studios is helping.

If such methods of innovative marketing will add to the collections at the BO window is something that only time will tell.